:::::::
I came home from the orchard Sunday with one thing on my mind: grain free apple crisp.
Whipped cream came in a close second, to be honest.
There is something about fall for me: the decomposing leaves on the ground, raking piles for the girls to jump in, hiking through the woods looking up to see streaks of bright blue sky peeking through, and the smells….love the scent of fall. Stews, soups, and of course, apple crisp, baked apples, sautéed apples, oven pancakes with apples, and this year, we found our family’s new favorite: the snow sweet apple.
This apple doesn’t brown up quite as quickly as others, has a smooth buttery taste, not so tart, not so sweet, it’s just right for both eating and baking.
I put it to the test on Sunday night with my grain free creation of apple crisp. I will say I began with the Apple Plum Crisp recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks, Nourishing Meals, and adapted it so I can enjoy it along with my family.
Here is what this delish dish looks like before going into the oven:
And I just so happened to have the perfect piece of pottery for this dish from my mother in law. The girls enjoyed this crisp over their oatmeal, next to scrambled eggs, or just on its own as a warm dessert.

Grain Free Apple Crisp

Ingredients
- For filling:
- 8 cored and chopped snow sweet apples
- 4 tablespoons tapioca starch
- 4 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 small lemon juiced and set aside
- For topping:
- 1 1/2 cups chopped almonds
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 5 tablespoons melted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Peel and core your apples and stir in large bowl with lemon juice and maple syrup. Sprinkle with tapioca starch and stir together. Using coconut oil, oil a 9x11 glass baking dish. Pour prepared filling into baking dish.
- Prep the topping by either chopping the almonds and walnuts or by separately placing them in your blender or food processor and pulsing until the size you desire. Stir in coconut sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
- In small saucepan, slowly heat maple syrup, butter and vanilla extract. Once melted, stir into bowl of topping. Drop scoops of topping onto the filling and bake for 45-50 minutes, placing foil on top to prevent burning for last 10 minutes.